Marking tag



April 1966 A, P. LOEB ETAL 3,247,608

MARKING TAG Filed March 19, 1962 INVENTORS.

ABRAHAMP. L058, JOHN H. PELL,

and JOSEPH F STEVENS Arrarneys United States Patent 3,247,608 MARKING TAG Abraham P. Loeb, Penn Township, Allegheny County,

John W. Pell, Pittsburgh, and Joseph F. Stevens, Se-

wickley, Pa., assignors to Dravo Corporation, Pittsburgh, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Filed Mar. 19, 1962, Ser. No. 180,597 2 Claims. (Cl. 40-2) This invention relates generally to a marking tag and more particularly 'is a metal marking tag for the identification of material such as metal gratings.

Heretofore it has been the practice to attach identification or marking tags to articles comprising a shipment wherein the tag was attached to the article by means of wires or the like. These articles are subjected to handling whereby the attachments of the tags to the articles are broken with the resultant loss of the identification tags. Oftentimes, such marking tags are employed to identify articles during processing where coatings are applied to the article such as in galvanizing or painting. Difficulties in keeping the tag in place and its obliteration by the coating are problems which confront the industry and in particular, grating manufacturers.

The present invention contemplates the construction of a metal tag of a flexible metal with side edges which are sharpened, and with indicia raised or embossed on the surface of the tag. The sharpened sides form biting edges so that when the tag is flexed between two spaced members it will spring into contact with the surfaces of the opposed members to maintain the tag in position. Since the tag indicia is raised, subsequent coating applied on the members and the tag will not obscure the identity markings. Because the tag frictionally contacts the confronting surfaces of the spaced members along narrow lines, the galvanizing or coating on the members with the tags in place sufficiently coats the member surfaces. That is, the contact area of the tag with the surfaces of the member is held to a minimum.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a marker tag which is secured to spaced members in a manner such that the tag can Withstand handling or shock forces without dislodgement.

Another object is to provide a metal tag of resilient material with raised indicia on the surface of the tag whereby coatings applied over the tag and article so marked do not obliterate the indicia.

Still another object is the provision of a flexible marking tag with edges which will be biased against the surfaces of spaced members between which the tag is flexed in marking position.

Another object is to provide a marking tag with serrated edges which, when engaged between surfaces of an object to be identified, form passages for drainage of liquids from the indicia bearing tag surface.

A complete understanding of the invention may be had from the following detailed description of a specific embodiment thereof when read in conjunction with the appended drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of the metal marking tag;

FIG. 2 is an isometric view of the marking tag applied to a floor grating;

Referring now to the drawings wherein like reference characters designate like or corresponding parts throughout the views, there is shown in FIG. 1, which illustrates a preferred embodiment, a'marking tag 11 of elongated rectangular configuration. On the top surface 12 of the ice tag there is provided an indicia 13 which is embossed or raised to identify a particular section of grating stock. The sides 14 of the tag are serrated with the outermost lateral edges 15 of the serrations being sharpened, if desired, to form knife edges. The tag 11 is composed of light gauge sheet metal and edges 15 of one side 14 are staggered in relationship to the edges 15 formed on the opposite side 14 of the tag such that the edges will contact the article surfaces at spaced diagonally separated points. Troughs 16 of the serrations form weep holes which do not contact an article when the marking tag 11 is installed in place. Accordingly, liquids will flow from the top surfaces 12 of the marking tag 11 through the troughs or weep holes such that a coating applied to the top surface of the tag 11 will not reach a depth whereat the indicia 13 is covered and obscured.

A floor grating 17 is shown in FIG. 2 composed of main support or girder bars 18 which are spaced fixedly in parallel relation by means of twisted rods or cross bars 19 which are shown extending normal to the parallel alignment of the girder bars. The marking tag 11 is flexed between two parallel and adjoining girder bars 18 such that the opposing surfaces 21 of the girder bars are frictionally engaged by the edges of the marking tag. In this position the marking tag 11 is protected from being scraped, pinched or sheared off in the handling or in the shipment of the floor grating 17. The tag indicia 13 is readable from the top of the grating such that the grating may be assembled into a floor by combining marked grating sections in accordance with a layout where the corresponding indicia or markings are patterned.

By the provision of the instant invention the floor gratings are marked by manipulating the tags manually without the use of hand tools and the tag will remain intact with the material until subsequent removal with a force directed to flex the tag from its engagement between the grating bars. The tags will withstand weathering or the application of coatings in the processing of the grating without obliteration of the indicia thereon because of the raised character of the markings on the tag.

What is claimed is:

1. A marking tag, for assembly with a section of metal grating having spaced substantially rectangular load bearing bars of a depth having a greater dimension than the thickness of the tag, comprising an elongated resilient metal strip of a width greater than the spacing of the opposing surfaces of the spaced grating bars to which it is to be assembled and bearing upon one face thereof a suitable identification indicia, said strip longitudinal edges comprising inwardly extending serrations separated by strip edge portion at substantially right angles to the Width of the strip and assembled in fixed relation between said opposing grating bar surfaces by initially transversely flexing said strip along the length thereof to dispose said serrated edge portions thereof out of the plane of the strip body portion and into frictional engagement with opposing faces of adjacent girder 'bars below the upper surfaces thereof.

2. The marking tag as defined in claim 1, wherein said serrations at opposite side edges of the tag are disposed in staggered relation.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 340,455 4/1886 Pegg 40305X 1,079,617 11/1913 Tennie 40-125 (Other references on following page) 3 UNITED STATES PATENTS Cobourn 40125 Denio 40-10 Pinckert 40143 X Barry 4024 Steiner 402 Vv'ood 402 Rosenthal 402 Williams 402 X Johnson 402 Shomber 2 138-89 X Heal 402 X Landis 402 FOREIGN PATENTS Great Britain. Great Britain.

EUGENE R. CAPOZIO, Primary Examiner. Knapp 94*30 X 10 E. v. BENHAM, JEROME SCHNALL, Examiners. 

1. A MARKING TAG, FOR ASSEMBLY WITH A SECTION OF METAL GRATING HAVING SPACED SUBSTANTIALLY RECTANGULAR LOAD BEARING BARS OF A DEPTH HAVING A GREATER DIMENSION THAN THE THICKNESS OF THE TAG, COMPRISING AN ELONGATED RESILIENT METAL STRIP OF A WIDTH GREATER THAN THE SPACING OF THE OPPOSING SURFACES OF THE SPACED GRATING BARS TO WHICH IT IS TO BE ASSEMBLED AND BEARING UPON ONE FACE THEREOF A SUITABLE IDENTIFICATION INDICIA, SAID STRIP LONGITUDINAL EDGES COMPRISING INWARDLY EXTENDING SERRATIONS SEPARATED BY STRIP EDGE PORTION AT SUBSTANTIALLY RIGHT ANGLES TO THE WIDTH OF THE STRIP AND ASSEMBLED IN FIXED RELATION BETWEEN SAID OPPOSING GRATING BAR SURFACES BY INITIALLY TRANSVERSELY FLEXING SAID STRIP ALONG THE LENGTH THEREOF TO DISPOSE SAID SERRATED EDGE PORTIONS THEREOF OUT OF THE PLANE OF THE STRIP BODY PORTION AND INTO FRICTIONAL ENGAGEMENT WITH OPPOSING FACES OF ADJACENT GIRDER BARS BELOW THE UPPER SURFACES THEREOF. 